Search Franklin Parish Criminal Records

Franklin Parish criminal records are held by the Franklin Parish Clerk of Court in Winnsboro and cover all criminal cases filed through the 5th Judicial District Court, including Franklin Parish felony charges, arrests, criminal convictions, and criminal court dockets.

Franklin Parish Clerk of Court

The Franklin Parish Clerk of Court keeps all official criminal court records for Franklin Parish. The Franklin Parish Clerk office is located at 655 Main Street, Winnsboro, LA 71295. The phone number is (318) 435-5133. The Franklin Parish Clerk office is the right place to go for Franklin Parish criminal court case files, criminal minute entries, and certified copies of Franklin Parish criminal judgments filed in the 5th Judicial District Court. Every Franklin Parish criminal charge filed in the 5th JDC is maintained by this office.

Inspection of Franklin Parish public criminal records at the Franklin Parish Clerk office is free under Louisiana Revised Statute 44:31. You do not need to show cause or explain your reason for wanting to see a Franklin Parish criminal file. Any member of the public can walk in during office hours and review Franklin Parish criminal case records. Franklin Parish Clerk office hours are generally Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Call ahead to confirm current hours and whether a specific Franklin Parish criminal record is on-site before making the trip to Winnsboro.

The Franklin Parish Clerk staff can search criminal records by name or criminal docket number. The more information you bring about the Franklin Parish criminal case, the quicker the search goes. A full legal name and approximate Franklin Parish criminal case year will help narrow the criminal records results. If you know the Franklin Parish criminal docket number, the search is faster still.

Note: Call ahead if you are traveling to Winnsboro specifically for Franklin Parish criminal records, since courthouse closures and holiday schedules can affect access to Franklin Parish criminal case files.

Searching Criminal Records in Franklin Parish

Franklin Parish does not currently offer an online criminal records portal for public searches of Franklin Parish criminal cases. The primary way to access Franklin Parish criminal records is to visit the Franklin Parish Clerk office at 655 Main Street in Winnsboro. Bring a valid photo ID and the name of the person whose Franklin Parish criminal records you want. Franklin Parish Clerk staff will help you locate the criminal file.

You can also submit a written request by mail for Franklin Parish criminal records. Send the request to the Franklin Parish Clerk office with the name you are searching, the approximate year of the Franklin Parish criminal case, and a self-addressed stamped envelope. Include a check or money order for Franklin Parish criminal record copy fees if you want copies mailed back to you. For plain paper copies of Franklin Parish criminal records, budget around $1.00 per page. Certified copies of Franklin Parish criminal records cost more. Confirm the current fee schedule for Franklin Parish criminal records by calling (318) 435-5133 before sending a check.

The 5th Judicial District covers both Franklin Parish and Richland parishes. If you are unsure which parish a criminal case was filed in, it may be worth checking both Franklin Parish and Richland Parish clerks. Franklin Parish criminal cases are filed at the Franklin Parish Clerk of Court in Winnsboro, which is a separate office from the Richland Parish Clerk in Rayville.

For a broader criminal records search that covers multiple agencies and arrest histories beyond Franklin Parish, Louisiana State Police criminal history records are available through their BCII division. The Louisiana State Police website at lsp.org explains how to request a criminal history report and what agencies can access Franklin Parish and statewide criminal records.

The LSP website includes links to criminal background check request forms, the IBC portal for criminal self-requests, and contact information for the BCII division in Baton Rouge that maintains Franklin Parish criminal records statewide.

Franklin Parish Court System

The 5th Judicial District Court covers Franklin Parish and Richland parishes. The Franklin Parish courthouse for criminal cases is in Winnsboro. The 5th JDC handles all felony criminal cases filed in Franklin Parish, along with civil cases and family matters. Appeals from Franklin Parish criminal cases in the 5th JDC go to the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeal, which is based in Shreveport.

When a Franklin Parish criminal case is filed, the Franklin Parish Clerk opens a criminal docket and assigns a case number. Every filing after that, including criminal motions, criminal responses, minute entries, and criminal orders, gets added to the same Franklin Parish criminal file. The Franklin Parish criminal file stays open until the case is fully resolved, and the criminal record remains a permanent public document after that unless the court seals it or the defendant later obtains a Franklin Parish criminal expungement.

For Franklin Parish misdemeanor and traffic criminal matters, Justice of the Peace courts and city courts may handle some Franklin Parish criminal cases at the local level. Those Franklin Parish criminal records may or may not be filed with the district court clerk, depending on the criminal offense and how it was resolved. If you cannot find a Franklin Parish criminal record at the district court level, ask the Franklin Parish Clerk whether the case might have been handled at a lower court.

Note: The 5th JDC shares a judicial district with Richland Parish, but each parish has its own clerk and files its own Franklin Parish criminal cases separately.

Louisiana State Criminal Records

Louisiana State Police Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information (BCII) compiles criminal history records from law enforcement agencies and courts across the state including Franklin Parish. When someone is arrested and fingerprinted in Franklin Parish, that criminal arrest data goes to BCII. Franklin Parish criminal convictions and final criminal dispositions from the 5th JDC also get reported. The result is a statewide criminal history that can show Franklin Parish criminal arrests and convictions across different Louisiana parishes, not just Franklin Parish alone.

Individuals can request their own Franklin Parish criminal history using the Internet Background Check (IBC) portal. This criminal history system is online and returns results faster than a mail-in request. The IBC portal at ibc.dps.louisiana.gov walks you through the steps to submit a self-request for criminal records and pay the required fee by credit card.

The IBC portal is available around the clock, so you can submit a Franklin Parish criminal records request at any time without waiting for office hours.

The Louisiana Department of Corrections maintains a separate database for people in state criminal custody. If someone convicted in Franklin Parish was sent to a state prison following a Franklin Parish criminal conviction, you can look them up through the DOC offender locator at doc.la.gov. That tool does not cover Franklin Parish jail criminal inmates, only those in state facilities after a Franklin Parish criminal conviction.

Expunging Records in Franklin Parish

Louisiana Revised Statute 44:9 is the main criminal expungement law. It sets out who qualifies for Franklin Parish criminal expungement, what criminal offenses can be expunged, and what steps must be followed. Not all Franklin Parish criminal records qualify for expungement. Violent criminal offenses, sex crimes, and some other categories are excluded from Franklin Parish criminal expungement. If you have a Franklin Parish criminal conviction or arrest that you think might qualify for expungement, review the statute or consult an attorney before filing.

The total cost to pursue a Franklin Parish criminal record expungement in Louisiana runs around $550 in most cases. That amount splits between the Franklin Parish Clerk of Court and Louisiana State Police for the criminal expungement process. The LSP portion must be paid by money order. You may also need to pay the Franklin Parish Sheriff for a pre-filing criminal records review. All Franklin Parish criminal expungement fees are non-refundable. If the Franklin Parish criminal expungement petition is denied, you do not get the money back.

To file a Franklin Parish criminal record expungement, you submit your expungement petition to the 5th Judicial District Court through the Franklin Parish Clerk office in Winnsboro. The Franklin Parish Clerk can tell you which forms to use and what the current filing fee is for Franklin Parish criminal expungements. After filing, the district attorney and relevant law enforcement agencies have a set time to object to the Franklin Parish criminal expungement. If there are no valid objections, the judge can grant the Franklin Parish criminal record expungement. An attorney is not required for Franklin Parish criminal expungements, but the process has enough steps that many people find legal help worthwhile.

Note: A Franklin Parish criminal expungement removes your record from public access but does not erase it entirely. Some state and federal agencies may still see Franklin Parish expunged criminal records under certain circumstances defined in Louisiana law.

Copy Fees and Access in Franklin Parish

Looking at Franklin Parish criminal public records in person is free at the Franklin Parish Clerk of Court. La. R.S. 44:31 guarantees that right. You can sit at the Franklin Parish courthouse and read a criminal case file without paying anything. The Franklin Parish Clerk cannot deny you access to a Franklin Parish public criminal record or charge you just to look at it.

If you want copies of Franklin Parish criminal records, fees apply. Standard copy fees at Louisiana clerk offices run around $1.00 per page for plain copies of criminal records and more for certified copies of Franklin Parish criminal documents. A name-based Franklin Parish criminal history search at the clerk level typically costs around $20. Call the Franklin Parish Clerk at (318) 435-5133 to confirm the current fee schedule for Franklin Parish criminal records before your visit.

For statewide criminal records from Louisiana State Police that include Franklin Parish criminal history, download the current BCII request forms and fee schedule from the LSP BCII forms page at lsp.org. That page lists current fees for both name-based and fingerprint-based criminal background check requests that cover Franklin Parish and all Louisiana parishes.

The BCII forms page also explains who can request Franklin Parish criminal records and what authorization is needed for third-party criminal history requests.

Note: Fees at the Franklin Parish Clerk office and fees at Louisiana State Police for criminal records are paid separately. Each agency handles its own billing for Franklin Parish criminal record requests.

Nearby Parishes

These parishes are near Franklin Parish. Each maintains its own court records and clerk of court. Use these links if you need to search criminal records in a neighboring parish.